Fixing the Odds
by Nessotherly
Summary: Riku sets out on a quest to reach the depths of the sleeping realm to save his lost friend. Meanwhile, Sora has taken a new fancy to architecture. SoRiku, post KH3, canon compliant.
1. Dandelions

_Hello there! Just a few things before we get started on this fic._

 _1\. I am not a native speaker, therefore, there might be a few mistakes in there, I apologise in advance._

 _2\. Big thanks to Seer_Of_Soul for beta-ing this chapter!_

 _3\. The beginning might be a bit harsh on Kairi but I swear I will do this character good. She deserved better than what she got in KH3, and I will fix it._

 _4\. This is a fix it fic. I will try to fix it all._

 _5\. Roxas is British and there's nothing you can do about this._

 _6\. Thank you so much for clicking, I hope you'll enjoy this._

* * *

And suddenly, it was as if — as if the sun had swallowed him whole.

"No," Riku breathed, once, twice, and then a thousand times. "No no no no no nononononono **_NO_** _"_

He rushed forward, leaving the others behind and ignoring their surprised shouts. He jumped on the bridge and stumbled against the paopu tree, grabbing Kairi by the arm and turning her to face him. She winced at the pain, and looked up at him, eyes filled up with tears and face contorted in pain.

"He's gone," she barely whispered, voice filled with uncontrollable sobbing.

That was not, absolutely _not_ what Riku had wanted to hear. "What have you _done?"_ he growled, panic slowly crawling up his veins and making him lose all form of restraint. He repeated the question, howling, this time, tearing out a scream from Kairi. "What have you _done!"_

"Riku!" Mickey's rose from behind him and soon, he was pulled away from Kairi with force by Donald and Goofy. "Riku, get a hold of yourself!"

But he was having none of it. " _You killed him!"_ he yelled again, and Kairi could no longer hold her cries to herself. She let out a long, heartbroken wail and folded in on herself. Lea had come to the rescue and was kneeling by her side, one arm passed around her shoulders. " _Youkilledhimy_ ** _oukilledhim!_** "was all Riku could think, could say or see, and suddenly sharp pain flourished on his cheek as he stumbled back in shock.

Mickey had _slapped_ him.

Donald and Goofy hauled him away from the small island, back into the shed where Kairi would be out of his sight - he couldn't think anymore, his throat was aching and his chest was hurting like never before.

why

why

 _why_

He hid his face into his arms, falling to the ground, back pressed against the wall and tried to shut out the outside world - there were many voices around him, some of them trying to calm him and he just wanted them gone. He wanted to disappear and to stop _feeling_ so much - every noise, every thing he touched seemed so much louder and imposing than it had ever been.

And his thoughts — they had only been a swirl of conflicting and shapeless ideas his panic and pain kept from concretisation - finally took form.

 _You'll never see him smile again._

Tears rolled down his cheeks and he tried - prayed, wished with all his heart - to black the thought out, to keep it away from his racing heart. But it wouldn't, it grew bigger and louder and he felt like drowning -

"Riku."

Aqua's calming voice distracted him for a few seconds and he forced himself to look up at her. She was the only one left in the shed. Her face expressed concern - but in a non condescending way, and a hint of understanding gleamed in her eyes. Riku's eyes welled up in tears again and he went back to the shelter of his arms. He didn't move or protest as Aqua slid against the wall and pressed his right forearm with her hands. They were warm and dry - nothing more, nothing of that invasiveness that had previously assaulted his senses. She was simply there, a warm sensation he could hold on to. So he did, grabbed her hand and held on as if his life depended on it.

"Does it get better?" he asked, because he knew, even though she had ended up finding her way back to her friends, that she, out of all other people, would understand.

"It doesn't," she said, her voice so low he could have mistaken it for the wind. "I'm sorry."

"I can't bear it," he blurted after a few moments of pure and unapologetic _dread._ "I can't just —"

"Then don't."

"Aqua, he is _gone."_

"He made us a promise, that he'd come back. You should hold him on to it."

"That's just words."

"Riku. Sora has —"

"Don't say his name."

"— Sora has bound himself to his words. It's an old, powerful magic that transcends any boundaries, be it from world to world or between the living and the dead. And if faith does not suffice - you make it happen."

Riku didn't answer. She was offering him hope - and he didn't need it. He knew, could sense the damages it would make to his heart. It was a treacherous feeling, a venom he could not let in.

So he shut Aqua out and waited, waited for his friends to take him back to the Gummi Ship, back to his old room in Yen Sid's tower, and gratefully accepted the dark embrace of sleep and the bliss of forgetfulness.

* * *

At first, there had only been emptiness. It was startling, to say the least - somewhat similar to the land of the dead, except neither sky nor sea seemed to mingle in the horizon. Reality seemed to be made out of cotton, a dense and static atmosphere one could almost touch. At least, there had seemed to be an up and a down, and he could walk, so that was something to hold on to.

And he had done a whole lot of walking. He'd tried to keep his emotions at bay, his fear and panic and humanity — this experience was the most unsettling of all, and Sora had had his fair share of trouble. Light was diffuse and did not seem to have a source - it was just _there_ , or maybe it was just that there was nothing left to see and things just were. But what things? Nothing was there, and _how_ could he expect to spend eternity in a place there was nothing to _do —_

Something clinked behind him - oh, so there _was_ a behind - and Sora turned on his heels, and saw something round and metallic on the ground - _no, the down._ He picked it up: a yo-yo, of all things, rested in his hand. Interesting. Did that mean —

Another clink, and suddenly, a library stood before him. Sora picked up a book and opened it - the pages were blank. He tried to summon an old book he had read countless times, saw it pop up in the shelves and flipped through the pages. Blank, again.

 _So much for entertainment_ , he thought, then walked past it and kept walking, swirling his yo-yo up and down as he reflected on the strange place he'd ended up in.

Hours passed, maybe. He couldn't feel any hunger or thirst, and his limbs almost seemed detached from his soul - they didn't hurt, didn't tire, even though he definitely could still feel fingers pressing against his skin when he checked.

His mind did tire, though - probably the lack of colour. It hurt his eyes, and it was difficult to keep walking when there was nothing to see.

The clink was louder, this time. He could feel the sound the world made as it shifted from the insufferable white of the nothingness into a luxurious field of hills and grass and an infinity of dandelions.

Sora stopped on his tracks and looked down at his feet - the grass was greener than anything he'd ever seen before. But the rest of the world - it remained blank, unchanged and ethereal.

Thus, Sora conjured the sky and the sun.

It almost blinded him.

* * *

Riku woke up slowly, unwilling to cast a shadow on the beautiful sunny afternoon whose warmth he could feel soaking up his entire body.

And he suddenly remembered he had taken care to shut his blinds the night before, and as he opened his eyes, he saw the curtains blocking the morning sun. His heart started racing - this dream had had a different feel to it, a different taste —

His dream-eater senses were tingling, and he slowly rose to a sitting position, running his hands through the mess that had become his hair. He knew this after taste, this warmth running through his veins, and he forced himself to remember the dream — an endless field covered in dandelions and the breeze sending them flying into the sky, and a very, very familiar sneeze followed by _cursing_ —

"Sora," he blurted out - the word didn't sound as painful as it had the night before — and then "shit," because how could he possibly go back to sleep now, when hope had sneakily found its place inside his heart and was sending him to the verge or hysteria?

He kicked his sheets to the ground and ran to the window, deliriously hoping - maybe - that a completely different view would wait for him on the grounds on Yen Sid's tower. No - still the same eery sky, the very same taunting clouds of glimmering stars who glared back at him and finished shattering the remains of his dream to the ground. He huffed in frustration, then raced back to the chair he'd left his clothes hanging, ran out of his bedroom, only to stumble against the sleeping form of Roxas - or was it Ventus?

"For _fuck's sake,"_ Roxas-or-Ventus growled, disentangling himself from Riku's sprawled limbs, only to soften his gaze as he saw the state in which his opponent was. "Riku…?"

"Where is Yen Sid?" was all Riku managed to groan, wincing at the pain flaring through his elbow. "I need to talk to him."

"Maybe you should wait, he's— Riku, wait, he's sleeping!"

"There is no time to sleep," was Riku's reply as he managed to get back on his feet and started racing down the spiralling stairs. He knew his master's quarters were the closest to the kitchen, by the second floor, but he got the feeling stairs were multiplying under his feet, and it took him forever to reach the lower floor, only to sigh as he saw what seemed to be an optical illusion lengthening the curve of the following flight of stairs.

"Doesn't look like he's willing to see you," he heard calling from above. Axel was looking down at him, arms crossed against the railing. The blonde he recognised now as Roxas stood next to him, concern sprawled across his face.

"It doesn't matter," Riku said, carrying on through the unwilling stairs.

"What happened?" Roxas called out.

Riku stopped in his tracks and ran a frustrated hand through his hair. "I've seen — I've seen Sora. I think. I've got to make sure."

The two other men gasped, and disappeared in an instant, rushing down the stairs loudly, and Riku rolled his eyes before continuing his excruciating journey to the lower floor.

A few minutes later - he had only gone down a quarter of the ridiculous amount of _steps_ \- he heard someone else calling out somewhere around the fourth floor.

"Where are you guys going?" That was Aqua, and then another door squeaked open, followed by Xion's voice: "What's happening?"

"Riku knows something about Sora!"

" _What?!"_

And Riku guessed the two other girls had joined the party. By the time he finally reached his goal, he saw Terra coming out of the kitchen. Riku raised his eyebrows - he was only wearing a robe inside out over his shirtless chest and very simple boxers. His hair was a _real_ mess and red stains covered his shoulders and neck. He was holding out a platter filled with pastries, coffee and even a few flowers Riku had seen growing in Yen Sid's garden.

Terra's eyes widened when he realised Riku was standing before him and taking in all of his post-coital glory, and blushed furiously. Riku couldn't help but smirk, although uncomfortable himself. "Hi," he said, simply, because he knew nothing both of them could do or say could make this less awkward.

"Hi, Riku, wha-" Terra gulped, then his eyes flicked up as he heard the stomping of the party Riku had involuntarily gathered. "What are you guys doing up this early?"

"I don't know - what time is it exactly?"

Terra blinked. "It's five."

"Oh."

"Terra!" Aqua said as the rest of the group finally joined the two other men down the flight of stairs, and Riku understood, judging by her own appearance, that she'd been the intended recipient of the carefully prepared breakfast Terra was carrying. Only she had had the decency to wear something appropriate, although there was no hiding her own love bites or dishevelled hair. "Terra, where were y— _oh_."

The two of them seemed to start a contest of blushing while Axel let out a soft appreciating whistle, leaving Xion to giggle and Roxas to check the love birds out one at the time, eyebrows raised in confusion, only to finally come to the realisation of what was going on and he rolled his eyes in embarrassment. "Axel," he said. "Don't be daft."

"Me? I am _never."_

"What is going on?" Terra asked, furiously giving back the platter to Aqua before fumbling with his robe in order to regain an ounce of modesty. "I thought everyone was sleeping."

"We can _see_ that," Axel said, resulting in Xion's giggles to burst out of her control and she had to hide her face in her hands in order to regain some composure.

"I don't have time for this," Riku said, and skipped past Terra to come face to face with Yen Sid's quarters, and started to pound on the door.

"Riku said he saw Sora."

" _Whaaat?_ but I thought —"

"We must have missed something."

"But how did he _see_ him?"

"I have no idea —"

"I'm just here to get some breakfast, to be honest."

"Let's grab a few things before all hell breaks loose."

"I couldn't sleep last night — "

"Yes, we can _all_ -"

" _Axel!"_

 _"_ Bring me some coffee would you?"

"Come and get it yourself, Xion."

Riku's hand was starting to hurt, but he didn't stop his knocking, only switched hands and hammered on the door some more, until finally, _finally_ , a very cross-looking Master Yen Sid opened his door.

"Good morning Master," Riku deadpanned. "I have good reasons to believe Sora is alive and we need to start searching for him _now_."

Yen Sid's glare almost immediately revealed an urgent form of concern and he raised a hand; the darkened room behind him suddenly lit up with the morning sun and revealed, strangely, the usual office they'd all been used to hang out at and receive their master's guidance. Strange. Wasn't the office at the other side of the floor, usually?

"Come on in, all of you. Terra, would you mind putting on some clothes and waking up whoever is still in bed? That would be appreciated."

He strolled back to his usual spot, sighing as he sad down on his chair and waited for the rest of the group to settle around the desk. Xion and Roxas joined them pretty soon, both of their arms filled with delicious breakfast food that they put down on the desk at Yen Sid's nod of approval. He conjured a few mugs and the coffee pot started pouring into everyone's cup.

Riku was losing patience - he tried to start his talk several times but Yen Sid would then turn his eyes on him and he'd shut up immediately. _Alright, then_ , he thought, _I guess everyone needs to be here for that._

He didn't like what _everyone_ entailed.

Soon, as the rest of the group was babbling quietly among themselves, he heard steps behind him and he turned back to see Mickey, Donald, Goofy, Ventus, Kairi and Terra coming through the door. Kairi was looking at him, her expression extremely pained and shy. Her eyes were swollen and she looked like she hadn't slept at all. Riku felt a pang of guilt and managed to nod at her, only to turn almost immediately his attention to Yen Sid. He'd deal with Kairi later. There were more pressing matters at hand.

"Riku," Master Yen Sid said. "You can tell us now."

Riku clasped his hands under the table, fiddling with his thumbs as he searched for the best words to describe his dream-like experience.

"I had a dream," he started, and he paused, expecting someone to let out a frustrated sigh at having been troubled this early in the morning for a dream. Nothing came. He appreciated that. "I had a dream, and it was not like - it was not a normal dream. It left me with a strange taste in my mouth, like — like when S-Sora and I dived into the dream worlds. I —"

He stopped again, realising some of the people gathered here this morning didn't know of this particular adventure - if they knew about any of his and Sora's adventures at all. "Sora and I have taken our test of mastery a few months ago," he explained, looking at the several startled faces that had put all of their attention on his words. "We dived into a few sleeping worlds in order to gain the power of waking, although — Sora almost didn't make it."

He told them of their adventure, how Sora had almost become Xehanort's vessel and how Riku had come to find out that he had become Sora's very own dream-eater.

"This dream, it felt - it felt very _familiar_ , like when I would fight his nightmares and that weird shadowy armour. And I can't help but think - could it be that I — dived into his dreams? Again?" He had turned his attention to Master Yen Sid now, and his voice had become almost pleading — he needed to know, he needed the confirmation, to _believe_ Sora was still okay, somewhere, and that they could all figure out a way to bring him back.

"It probably happened more times than you'd think," Master Yen Sid said, crossing his fingers and biting his lower lip as he reflected on the matter at hand. "As Sora's dream-eater, it should be expected that Sora's dreams have been constantly spilling into your own since your return from the dream worlds."

"But it never felt like _that_ ," Riku said. "Never."

"Where was he?"

The two men interrupted themselves, looking at the one who had raised her voice -Kairi. It almost didn't sound like hers. "Where was Sora? Is he okay?"

"I don't know," Riku replied, trying his best not to look at her in the eyes. "I don't remember it very well, I — at first, or was it after? No, no, it was definitely before, he was _nowhere_ , nowhere at all. He was simply — he was just walking, and there was nothing around him. And suddenly, there was this, this strange _sun_ , and it was so bright it was startling, almost like —"

Riku looked out of the window, searching for his words, and winced as he came to look at the present sun directly.

"Almost like it was _new_. And then, Sora was sneezing, because the dandelions started to fly, and that's when I woke up —"

"Dandelions, you say?" Yen Sid blurted out, and Riku nodded, startled; Yen Sid tapped his lip with his fingers, eyes lost in contemplation. "Interesting."

"What? What's interesting?"

Yen Sid shook his head. "Only my wishful thinking. This is — this is extremely good news, my boy. You were right, this is very promising."

"Do you think we can find him?!" Mickey's voice rouse up, filled with hope. "Can Riku dive back into this dream and bring him back?"

"It will not be that simple," Yen Sid said. "Riku only knows how to willingly dive into places or people that have a physical presence — and although he might still share this connexion, he will not be able to fully interact with Sora's dreams if he cannot dive by the means of Sora's own body. We _need_ Sora's body to do that. But —"

"It's gone," Kairi said. "When he brought me back — he couldn't, not fully. He had to leave his body behind, in — in _that_ place, that strange —"

"Where?" Riku uttered suddenly. "Where were you two? Where did he _find_ you?"

"I don't know, I — it was strange, there was no up and down, just, this weird _sky_."

"The Final World," Yen Sid and Mickey said in chorus. "Where souls go to rest. He brought you back from the dead, Kairi." Yen Sid added, his voice solemn. "Therefore, if his body lies there —"

"He dived in too deep," Riku said, struggling to keep his voice from betraying his sorrow. "Xehanort - the young one - he warned him. He warned us all. If he reached this place with the power of waking, to its sleeping version —"

"Then he is stuck," Mickey said. "Stuck in the final stage of sleep."

"Where there is _nothing,_ " Riku added, pressing his fingers to his lips as if to stop them from shaking.

"No," Master Yen Sid said, then sighed. "Not nothing."

They all turned their eyes back on him, and he suddenly seemed to have aged a couple of thousand years. He placed his tired gaze on Riku, and added, sadly:

"There are dandelions."


	2. Another One Bites The Dust

Thank you so much for the comments, they were a real treat! :D

Another thing - seing how this fic is going, I will indeed be taking the secret ending of the game into account but I will not acknowledge the TWEWY implications that come with it - instead, I will give it my own twist and I have no idea what it is going to be like. We shall see. I am, literally, improvising with just a few key scenes in mind. (insert shrugging emoji)

Also I would like to thank the lovely, wonderful and extraordinary animeXalchemist for beta-ing my fic. I terribly grateful bro, and I love you. Thank you so, so much.

* * *

"Riku, can I have a word?"

Her voice was shaking and she had absolutely no energy left in her for this dreaded confrontation, but she had no other choice — she knew it was better to get it over with now.

"Yeah, sure."

She saw the looks the others were throwing their way and chose to ignore them. She could handle herself - she new she had no reason to fear Riku. She led them outside, to the training grounds where she knew no one would be able to overhear them. Leaning against a tree, she watched Riku silently as he started pacing before her, still unable to look her in the eyes.

"I've been thinking, and — I think there is more information to be gathered among the princesses of heart," she finally said, breaking the awkward silence and managing, quite proudly, to keep her voice from wavering too much. "Snow White and Aurora both fell to the sleeping curse, and I believe there might be a way to find the evil queen's old grimoires and —"

"All right," Riku said, eyes fixed on something behind her shoulder. "I'll stop there and ask around."

Kairi blinked once, twice, and finally, irritation got the better of her. " _No_ , that's not what I meant. _I_ will go, and ask around."

She had managed to startle him, this time. He finally looked at her and raised an eyebrow, before letting out a cruel little laugh. "Wha-at? _You_?"

"Yes," she said, squaring her jaw and standing a little bit straighter so as to show him she was not afraid of what he might have to say about that.

" _No!_ " he blurted, as if in total disbelief.

"What do you mean ' _no_ _'_ _?_ Do you think I need your approval? That you have any say in what I choose to do?"

"Well — _Yes,_ yes, I do."

"And why would that be?"

Riku let out a frustrated little noise and started averting his eyes again. "I — I just _do_."

"Oh, cut the bullshit, Riku. You have no right _—"_

 _"I_ have to look after you, okay? Sora is not here anymore to take care of that, now, _is he_?"

Kairi remained silent for a few seconds, almost stunned. "I—I don't need you to look after me, Riku. I'm perfectly capable of taking care of myself, thank you very much. If I choose to go on my own to Snow's, then I bloody well will do so!"

" _Really?_ And how do you think you might be able to do that, may I ask?"

"What do you mean, _how?"_ she gritted in between her teeth. "By _foot_ , obviously? What, what do you think? That Master Yen Sid does not have a few ships lying around I could borrow?"

"Do you even _know_ how to pilot one?" he asked, incredulous. "Besides, what do you intend to do, uh? Chat up your little princess girlfriends and somehow manage to escape the heartless lurking around their pretty castles? Yeah? Did you even think of that? What, do you expect me to follow you around and clean up the way while you run around dark forests and shady alleyways so you can have your moment of glory? I don't have time for that, Kairi, and you shouldn't throw away the life Sora has given you back, that's just - that's just ungratefulness at its _finest_. Don't waste anyone's time playing the hero and just stay safely home, ok? Just — go home, and wait for your boyfriend to come back. I'll take care of that."

"Is that what this is about, then?" Kairi blurted out, heart racing as Riku's words were thrown at her face like poisonous daggers. "I _begged_ him to leave me be. I didn't - I didn't _choose_ to be killed, Riku! You cannot hold me responsible for that —"

"I'm not —"

" _Yes you are_. I didn't _mean_ to be killed, I didn't _want_ him to bring me back, and you cannot just throw the blame at me when you know _very well_ there is no convincing Sora to do something he doesn't want to!"

"You should never have been there in the first place!" Riku yelled, before closing his eyes and muttering a frustrated "Shit. Listen, I — I should get going —"

" _No_ ," Kairi retorted, crossing her arms before her chest. "You have something to tell me - just do it, just spit it out. I can take it."

"I don't want to do this, Kairi —"

" _Tell me!"_

" _Fine!"_ Riku turned back on his feet, hands fisting his hair and desperately pulling at it in an attempt to regain an ounce of self control. That was okay. Kairi could take it. She wasn't afraid, never, not of Riku. " _Fine!_ You want me to say it? You want me to finally say it?!"

" _Yes."_

"You are _useless_ , and Sora would never have died had you not been _there."_

It appeared as though Riku regretted the words almost immediately as tears began welling up in Kairi's eyes at the words that he had dared to speak out loud. "Shit. Shit, Kairi, I'm sorry, I-"

"No, it's okay, it's— I get it, you lost your friend and—"

"That's no reason to— I shouldn't have—"

But she didn't hear whatever he had left to say; she hid her ears in between her hands and blurted incoherently: "You're right! You're right, okay? You're right, I killed him, I thought I could do it, that I could protect him, but I couldn't, and he's gone, he saved me and he's gone and now I have to at least _try_ and you hate me and—"

She kept on going, her hands slowly sliding from her ears to press against her eyes, trying to somehow keep her tears inside, as if that could possibly work, because she was tired, too tired of the guilt and the pain and all she wanted was to go back in time, back to keep them from ever building a raft and everything would just be _fine._

She felt Riku's hand pressing against her shoulder but she pushed him back, violently, and glared up at him through her tears, white rage clouding her judgement and her following words:

" _Do not touch me,_ I do not need your pity or your — or your contempt. You have no idea what it's like—"

"Me? Me, no idea what it's like? To lose him?!"

"Yes, you—"

" _He's my best friend!"_ Riku shouted, his face gone white with indignation.

"And I _love_ him! _"_ she cried back, before letting out a surprised gasp at the tears her words had conjured in Riku's eyes. "You—"

"Do what you want," he growled, furiously wiping away the treacherous tears as his face flushed in embarrassment. "I don't have time to deal with your nonsense. Have fun playing the saviour, and try not to get killed."

And with that, he was gone, violently kicking a few stones that'd had the misfortune of getting in his way. Kairi remained against the tree for a few more minutes, slowly processing the brand new revelation Riku's tears had brought to the surface. Did he —

Yes, of course he did.

Oh, how it _all_ made sense now.

* * *

"So, _you're_ the Riku Sora's been looking for everywhere," Leon stated, eyeing him up and down and Riku couldn't help but blush.

"Yes."

"Did he? Find you?"

"Oh, yes, a long time ago."

Leon seemed to hesitate for a few more seconds, as if reflecting on whether or not Riku was worth his trust, and seemed to finally settle on the positive as he let him and the others into the HQ of the Radiant Garden Restoration Committee.

"Hello," Terra said.

"Hi, nice to meet you," Aqua smiled at Leon as she walked past him into the room.

"Good morning!" Ventus beamed.

"Leon! Good to see you again!" Mickey said, and Leon's eyes widened in surprise.

"Your Majesty! I didn't see you there."

"That's because I'm short," Mickey replied with a wink, and Leon couldn't help a smile as he closed the door behind him.

"You said it, not me."

Riku had heard a lot about Sora's friends from Radiant Garden, although he'd never had the pleasure to meet them - only observe them from afar a few years ago, when he'd been blinded by jealousy and set on a path he'd struggled to stray away from for years. Aqua, Ventus and Terra went to stand by the window, seemingly awkward in this unfamiliar place and looking around with interest. Riku, on the other hand, stuck by Mickey as he took in his surroundings.

The HQ had been moved to the castle and was adjacent to the laboratory he knew Ienzo, Even, and Ansem the Wise were working in and Riku knew they would soon be joined by Isa and Naminé. This place stood on the lower floor of the castle and the room's high windows were mostly obscured by complicated formulas and doodles of what Riku guessed were new ideas to either protect the world and its inhabitants from the ever growing forces of darkness or bring back the present city to its former glory. A gigantic computer stood on one side of the room and a blonde haired man was busy typing on it at full speed, a cigarette hanging from his lips. He didn't seem to have noticed them yet.

"Is Merlin around?" Mickey asked, perching himself on a chair next to the only unobstructed window; there was a round coffee table before him and a few other seats, and Riku figured this spot was meant for visitors to discuss with the committee. He sat next to the king and nodded to the three other people as an invitation to join them.

"I've sent word of your arrival when I received your call," Leon replied, going for the little kitchenette and turning on the coffee machine. "Tea? Coffee?"

Riku nodded - it was still pretty early and he had barely been able to sleep for a few minutes that night, his fight with Kairi playing on repeat in his head all the while desperately trying to ignore it so as to find his way back to Sora's dream. It had been a complete failure.

A few minutes later, Leon came back with a tray carrying their drinks and sat before them, crossing his fingers above his knee and leaning back, waiting for them to engage the conversation.

 _Leon is a fine looking man_ , Riku thought while Mickey started summarising their last adventures and Sora's unfortunate end. Riku tried to remain as expressionless as possible. He remembered Leon to be a freakishly tall potential adversary he might have to take down if their paths ever crossed, and also recalled very vividly the blind hatred he'd felt towards him and his friends as Maleficent whispered lies and deception in his ear on that fateful night he'd found out Sora had made new friends in a very short amount of time.

But now, he could see genuine concern on Leon's face as Mickey finally revealed the reason they had set off on this new quest, and Leon's eyes immediately sought Riku's, as if to make sure he was okay. Riku couldn't help feeling grateful and offered him a little smile.

"I am so sorry, it must be terribly difficult for you," he said. "Please, let me know how I can be of help."

"We are looking for Maleficent," Riku replied as calmly as possible - although he couldn't help the dread tingling in his mind at the prospect of having to face her cruel lies again before he'd be able to untangle the truth from her words. "We know that she has used a sleeping curse on one of the Princesses of Hearts, ten years ago. She might be a terrible person, but there is no denying that she is an incredibly powerful fairy, and her knowledge might be of use to us."

"A sleeping curse? I don't understand, isn't Sora…"

"We have reasons to believe that Sora is trapped in the realm of sleep; the problem is, we do not know much about it, as it can be pretty unpredictable," Mickey said. "This is why we would also like to talk to Merlin; he might be able to guide us in a direction we have not thought of before."

"Maleficent?" the blonde man suddenly said, finally turning away from his computer to look at them with tired, wrinkly eyes. "Oh, yes, we might know of her whereabouts."

" _You do_?" Riku said, and exchanged an excited look with the king. "Where? Where was she sighted?"

"Hey, chill out, kid. That was a few weeks ago, I don't know if she's still hanging out around here."

"Spit it out, Cid," Leon said, sounding exasperated.

"It's our little fairy friends," Cid added. "They used to hang out with her crew but they switched sides like, a year ago or so. Our finances never recovered from that… They can sense it when she lands in this world; it's a fairy type of antenna, I guess."

"Yes," Mickey said. "The three good fairies told us they'd sensed her return from the dead."

"Yea, that thing. Well, they've told us whenever they thought she'd be trouble again, happened quite a few times these past months. We haven't had any kind of problem, though. Apparently, she would just come by and leave a few days later."

"Do you guys know where?"

"The girls told us she was probably hanging out in the hollow bastion."

Riku blinked. "Wait — what?"

"You know? That old castle on the other side of the canyon?"

"Yes, yes I know of it —"

"Well, that's where she might be. We still haven't taken the time to restore the place, it's filled with Heartless. It's in our plans though, we should get to it in the next month or so."

"Sorry," Leon added. "I could come and give you a hand if you'd like."

Riku smiled at him, seeing in his eyes genuine concern over Sora's wellbeing. "We'll get in touch if we need backup."

* * *

The change of scenery seemed to have done them a lot of good. Although their arrival at the Dwarf Woodlands and the excruciating long hours it had taken them to reach the city had taken a toll on them, they had been laughing and drinking and catching up late into the early morning by the time they reached a cosy tavern. By the time they all went to bed in their respective rooms, they all had a tired yet satisfied smile splattered on their faces.

It had been good to just leave the pain behind and finally take action, to see the stars twinkling outside their small Gummi Ship and Axel had been wonderful - he hadn't asked any questions, had just given her a brief hug as she dried her last tears and offered to join her on her quest. Roxas and Xion had appeared from nowhere and declared they would come too, and Kairi didn't have the strength - or the will, really - to refuse. She didn't know them very well, but Axel had told her so much about Roxas, and there seemed to be a certain something about Xion - other than the fact that she looked like a brunette version of herself - that just screamed family.

Therefore, she smiled and thanked them, and they all went to Master Yen Sid to request one of his spare ships.

They woke up late, but Kairi couldn't find the strength to mind it. She had slept like the dead and the sun was shining upon her as if trying to melt Riku's icy words. She tried to shake it off, to focus on her mission and quickly put on a pair of jeans, a pink sweater and tied her short hair into a half-bun. She had thrown her old dress to the ground the night before and she suddenly realised she couldn't even stand the look of it — _useless_ , he had said. She quickly hid her dress in her backpack and went downstairs where she found a very hungover trio falling asleep over a steaming breakfast.

"You guys look glorious," she said as she sat next to them, stealing Axel's plate from under him and trying out the bacon. "Oh my gosh, this is so good."

"You can have it," Axel said, looking at the plate with disgust. "I don't think I can swallow a single thing this morning."

"Oh, I feel _fine,"_ she replied in a sing-song voice.

"I didn't know you could drink that much, really — you and Xion can hold your liquor."

"We're made from the same mould," Xion replied, and Kairi snorted coffee out of her nose.

"Too soon," she said, half laughing and half choking; Roxas reached out a hand to tap on her back.

"By exactly three months," Xion added and slid a cup of water towards her.

"Naminé stayed with Isa, didn't she?" Roxas asked.

"She said they'd go back to Radiant Garden, I guess they got on the ship with R— the king," Axel spluttered, carefully avoiding the R word. Kairi rolled her eyes at that.

"You can say his name, you know. Avoiding it won't make him any less of a shithead."

Axel chuckled and ruffled her already messy little bun. She punched him on the arm, and they ate the rest of their breakfast in companionable silence before setting off into the city towards Snow White's castle, where they announced themselves to the guards as being old friends of the queen.

The castle was big and imposing; truly, it was a masterpiece of architecture made of old structures and artful windows. Its corridors, although nicely decorated with fresh flowers and beautiful curtains, remained decidedly somber and Kairi could only imagine what it would have been like to spend a childhood locked up in such a place as the unlawful servant of an evil queen.

"Her Majesty will see you now," the young valet who had guided them said and, with a little flourish, he opened the door for them.

The room was resplendent, calling to mind a beautiful boudoir, and Snow White was standing by the window. Upon hearing the door opening, she quickly ran towards Kairi and held her in a warm embrace as she giggled her excitement at seeing her again.

"I could not believe it! When they told me a strangely dressed red-headed girl had asked for a meeting with me, I just _knew!_ Oh, Kairi, it has been so long! Come, come, and you too, friends, come and sit! I have called for some tea. Oh, Kairi, I am so excited! And look at you, _how you've grown!"_

Kairi couldn't help letting go of a few tears as she saw the same emotion glistening in Snow White's eyes, and she was directed back to the little sitting area the queen had set up for their arrival.

"And you look like you're doing very well too, Snow," Kairi said, still holding onto Snow White's hands, and smiling like an idiot. Her heart seemed to answer to her friend's light, and a strange warmth seemed to spread throughout her body. "Oh! This is Axel, Xion and —"

"Ventus?" Snow White said, squinting at Roxas. "You're Ventus, aren't you?"

"Actually," Roxas said, before letting out a little embarrassed laugh. "Oh, well, this is going to be complicated. I am not— I am not Ventus, actually. But, yeah, I do look like him."

Snow blinked. "You do! How strange… how is it possible? And now that I think about it — Xion and Kairi —"

Xion, Kairi, Axel and Roxas laughed awkwardly — oh, this was going to be really difficult to make sense of.

"It's —" Kairi started, scratching her head. "It's complicated."

"To be honest," Axel said, crossing his arms, "We still haven't completely figured it out yet."

"You're right! _We haven't_ ," Kairi gasped.

"Do we really have to, though?" Roxas groaned. "We all look like each other for some weird reason, thanks to Sora. But we're not the same. It's as simple as that."

"How peculiar," Snow White said, a little smile curving at the edge of her lips.

"At this point, we're mostly relying on clothes and hair colour to differentiate ourselves," Xion added, rolling her eyes.

"But Ventus — is he all right? Oh, it's been _years_ since I've last seen him. He was such a sweet boy."

Axel smiled at that. "Oh yes, he is! He's doing very well, and he is back with his friends, at long last."

"I am glad to hear that."

Kairi smiled at Snow, who raised an inquisitive eyebrow at her. "So?" the queen said, settling into her seat gracefully. "Please, let me know how I can be of help."

"We're— we're looking for informations, actually," Kairi began, feeling suddenly uncomfortable at the memories she was about to awaken in Snow White. "Sora — do you remember him? The boy who woke us up from our slumber when Maleficent was holding us hostage?"

"How could I forget him? He was such a nice friend to you, wasn't he?"

"He is." _Was_ , she recalled painfully. "Well, he is currently lost in sleep — at least, that is what we think. Things — things didn't go as planned, and we have reason to believe that he is lost in the realm of sleep and — and I was wondering if you could tell me more about this place. If you have any memories of it, that is. I — I thought you might have some informations, seeing that you had fallen under the sleeping curse."

"Oh," Snow White said, averting her eyes, and she took the time to place her cup on the table as she looked outside the window. "Yes, I do remember it. I do remember it pretty well, to tell you the truth, although... I try not to."

"I understand," Kairi said, reaching out to her friend and placing a comforting hand on her arm. "But — I wouldn't ask you if it wasn't important. I — We need to bring him back."

"We owe it to him," Roxas said, and Snow White's gaze softened when she turned her eyes on him.

"I know. I can feel it - your longing for your friend."

She remained silent for a few seconds, as if searching for her words, but Kairi could see her hands trembling against her lap. Soon enough, Snow White rose from her seat and started pacing around the room - calmly, her steps as light as air. Kairi couldn't help but admire how graceful she moved around them — like a queen. A strange, forgotten memory gnawed at the edges of her mind — she pushed it away, focusing on her friend's speech.

"She lied to me — the queen, she took on the form of an old woman and tricked me into taking a bite of her apple. I was confused at first — one second, I was standing outside my friends' house, and the next, I was lost in the middle of these strange, gleaming — buildings, yes, that's what it was, although I had never seen anything quite like it."

She stopped by a lovely desk covered in books and trinkets, her hands hovering over the items, lost in thought, and finally turned to face them.

"The strange thing was — I was alone, completely alone. The ground was made of this strange dark _stone_ and there were so, so many lights, shining from strings stretched in between these tall structures, from the windows and even from under me. I — I do not know how long I stayed there. It felt like months, years, maybe less. Time didn't seem to count, there, so I walked, and walked some more. Sometimes, I would explore these buildings, but at other times, some of these rooms were empty. Not — empty, the way you would say that a jar is. There was just _nothing_ there — just, this strange and daunting whiteness that seemed to stretch on forever. I never — actually, no, that is not true. I entered one of those rooms, once."

Her hands had started shaking again, and she quickly hid it by pressing them against her chest. "I entered, and I remember that I was surprised there was a sort of ground I could stand on. And — oh, yes, it was strange, but I remember wishing to sit down, and suddenly, a chair appeared, and it was a very similar chair to the ones my dwarf friends had, and as soon as I started thinking of them, the — the place changed, turned into the inside of their house. Oh, how I had _missed_ them. And then —"

She stopped, as Kairi recognised what sounded like a sob escaping her mouth. She immediately rouse rose up from her chair and went to support her, one arm sliding against her back while the other rested against her elbow.

"It's okay, you can — you can stop there, if you want."

"No, I —" Snow breathed in slowly, profoundly, and seemed to regain an ounce of confidence. "I _have_ to. If Sora is stuck in such an awful place, then — then you need to know, and hurry. The time I have spent in that dream, here, was short. Less than a couple of days. How long has Sora been gone?"

 _Four days_ , Kairi thought, and what felt like permanent dread had settled in her stomach. "Not long," she replied, which was only half a lie. It probably felt like centuries to Sora already.

"Then _hurry_. Because — because, if he starts missing his friends, if he starts missing you, things — things will change, things will become ugly. I did, I missed them, missed my friends so much. And therefore, the dream provided me with them. But I _knew_ , I knew it couldn't be them. I knew that was not the real world, and that it couldn't be them. But some part of me _wanted_ it, and that place answered to my wishes, always. So — they would interact with me, although — oh, it messed with my head, Kairi. I do not even know how to _explain_ it. I do not even want to _remember_ falling prey to their tricks again— I ran, as quickly as I could, I ran from that room and refused to enter a building ever again. And then — and then my prince woke me up, and finally, _finally_ , it was all over."

Silence followed her words as they all tried to untangle the information she had provided them with. Kairi couldn't make much sense of it; it didn't sound at all like the dream Riku had shared with them. Sora had been in an _empty_ place that was somehow filled with —

"This might sound like a strange question," Xion started, her brows furrowed in concentration as she tried to join the dots together, "But were there any dandelions? In your dream, I mean."

"Oh!" Snow White said, narrowing her eyes at the brunette. "Well — yes, yes, now that I think about it. The air was filled with them — their seeds flowed throughout the whole place, as if carried by the wind, although I never managed to find where they came from."

The four friends exchanged a meaningful look and Kairi thought — _Master Yen Sid had better stop talking in riddles and start giving us some straight answers._


	3. Silver Rings

Thank you so much for the reviews you guys have left on the previous chapter! I am over the moon and I love you all so, so much.

Ok so basically I'm realising that this fic is WAY too plot heavy so I'll probably cut on a few scenes I had planned and jump straight to the fixing (and the very interesting SoRiku stuff we're all waiting for) in a couple of chapters or so.

I want to thank once more my lovely and extraordinary pineapple-loving beta animeXalchemist for her hard work on this chapter and for the late night wasted on helping me making sense of this hell of a plot 3 Kyo, you are the best, even though your culinary preferences are highly questionable.

Bonne lecture!

* * *

 **III - Silver Rings**

It was exactly as he remembered it, although there was no ignoring the amount of dust that had settled on top of the furniture. It had been years, after all, and according to Leon's recap of the past restorations made by the committee, no one had set foot in this place ever since Riku had succumbed to the embrace of the darkness.

He could not shake the feeling that he felt at home in his old room, though.

And that, probably, was the most upsetting thing about it all - not the ungodly amount of foul memories that came with this place. Countless tears had been shed on his pillow, indents could still be found on the walls he had tried to bring down with his fists, he had paced countless times on that mouldy rug when he could not shake the feeling time had stopped - slow, it was too slow, everything had been too slow - half a dozen dusty books were still unfinished in a way too empty library.

He crossed his arms in an attempt to ignore it and walked towards the dirty window. The canyon could be seen facing west and as the sun was slowly setting over the mountains, its light shone over the faraway tracing of the city of Radiant Garden. He remembered looking at these old constructions and wondering what life had been like before the fall of this world — before turning his attention on something else, because nothing truly mattered back then if not the pain.

Riku closed his eyes and shut the blinds — this room was better left in the dark, forgotten in a lonely place at the back of his mind. Yes, it was for the better. There was no use in dwelling in the mistakes of his past.

Why, then, was it so difficult to leave?

He turned back and looked at the desk, at his abandoned scribbles on the blank notebooks Maleficent had bestowed him with. "Magic should be reflected upon," she had told him on that day she had come h— _no_ , Riku thought, shaking his head in admonition — back to the castle. "Write your impressions, your ideas and understanding of it, whenever you can. You never really acquire magic — you _strive_ for it your entire life." He had done as she had said, and even now, his understanding of his own magic ran deeper than he could ever have thought — that was probably the reason he could handle dark magic so easily without fearing, anymore, that it could take over his being once more.

It didn't feel like he was playing with fire.

 _Sora_ , he read on the corner of a torn up page. He hesitated for a few seconds, then moved it around so as to see what else had been written on the torn up page.

 _Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora S ora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora_

Riku's eyes widened — utter horror filled his entire being as he swiped away the treacherous paper with a blast of dark fire. Blue flames consumed the page by stretching their tiny tendrils towards its edges and Riku could almost feel the imprint left by his frantic scribbling of his best friend's name on the very wood of the desk. His chest was constricting and something seemed to catch in his throat — no, was it panic? _Again_?

"I remember this room," he heard someone say behind his back and he quickly swallowed back the tears before turning to see Terra standing at the entrance of his old chambers.

"Were you there before?" he asked with a wavering voice, hiding his shaking hands in his pockets.

"No," Terra replied, slowly walking towards him while his eyes scanned the entirety of the dark room. "But you were."

"How— _oh_ , I see." Terra had been that dark figure hovering over Ansem, mouth closed shut for decades and compelled to do the treacherous bidding of his master.

"I am sorry I could not—" Terra started, before averting his eyes. "That I could not be of help. Back then."

"Terra," Riku said, reaching out for his arm and squeezing it comfortingly. "I know. I've been there — I know what it's like. To watch the days go by and being unable to do anything about it."

"Still. I am sorry. You deserved better — a proper childhood."

"Oh, I had that."

"You are still _so young_."

"Even though it might have been short, I had my fun. Sora — Sora made sure every single day was an adventure." Riku smiled at that. Aqua had been right: the sadness didn't leave. And now— now he had a reason to believe in his return.

"You know, my friends are the only reason I am here today," Terra said, clasping Riku's hand in his and smiling at him tenderly. "Once in a while, I'd get a glimpse of them. Of Aqua. Not much, not for long. It might have happened a couple of times, I don't remember it very well. It all felt like a dream, like something whatever was left of me might have imagined. It — it felt like sleeping, most of the time. But then, Aqua's light would bring me back to my sense of self. She was my anchor. And I am glad, truly. I came back to her. To them."

"I think," Riku said, biting on his lower lip as flashes were brought back to his memory — writing down Sora's name over and over and over again as he desperately tried to hold on to the light of his memory, because he _knew_ , he could _feel_ himself losing to the darkness and losing his own sense of identity. "—I think my hate is what helped me hold on to my sense of self for so long. I hated him so much, back then."

Terra snorted, and Riku looked up at him, startled. "Hate, right," Terra added, and Riku blushed furiously, before averting his eyes until his lips curled into a sheepish smile.

"Yeah."

Terra let out another laugh, then reached for Riku's hair and ruffled it affectionately. "That thing you're doing? Moving heaven and earth so as to bring your friend back to your side? I admire it. We all do. It's the right thing to do."

Riku sighed — he was nowhere near to finding him. All he had were crumbs Sora had inadvertently left behind before vanishing without a trace. "I'll find him, even if it's the last thing I have to do. I'll give up anything if it means Sora can see the light of day one more time."

Terra nodded. "I know he will."

* * *

This place might be unsettling, strange and magical and devoid of sensations, but Sora could not help but think that the whole never-getting-tired thing was a real perk of being dead.

He had been busy - after all, there was nothing left to do but trying to pass the time with projects and building and coming up with new ideas. He'd built things. A lot of them. If he could imagine it, then the place provided him with it. There were limits to it— he could not conjure thoughts, mainly. Books would come to him empty, because thoughts had to be applied to them. So Sora had tried writing a book, for a while. He'd quickly given up; he couldn't write to save his life. The place couldn't give him music, but instruments could be imagined. So Sora had tried to learn the piano. It had been a disaster.

He'd finally figured that what he was good at was creating things out of nothing — both figuratively and literally. He'd conjure materials and start working. Wood, paper, rulers, pencils and saws had become a part of his routine.

 _What even is this place?_

Sora had mostly built awkward looking sheds. A whole bunch of them — almost enough to make a village. He lived in one of them — if living was even the correct expression to represent what being in this place was like. He'd managed to transform the void into a somewhat normal looking area. He'd conjured trees and rocks and tried to shape the ground into the landscape of his home world — and then some other worlds. He'd loved the forest surrounding the kingdom of Corona, so he'd tried to recreate it as faithfully as possible somewhere East of the centre of his little dominion. He'd grown snowy mountains in the North in which he liked to go snowboarding sometimes, although snow in this place was strange and uncooperative, and he'd been stuck in avalanches more times than he'd like to admit. He'd built a castle — then another, and some more, all of them stranger than the next, all made out of spikes and bumps and unnecessary adornments, stairs and bridges that led absolutely nowhere and were just there for the fun of it.

Sometimes, it felt like Sora had always been there — that his existence and sense of self had been delimited by this strange and timeless place, and sometimes, he almost forgot where he came from. Time messed with his head at times.

 _You're just avoiding the truth._

The Western part of his kingdom was filled with sea and play islands, all made out of mischievous structures in which Sora trained his parkour skills. He didn't really have to — his skills were already impeccable. There were no more bodily constraints to his physical abilities. He could do everything, now. Fly, jump, summersault and even explode.

That had not been very fun.

 _You're a coward._

And now - as much as _now_ could be considered, here - he'd been hammering for what seemed to be an eternity. Maybe that was true rather than an exageration. His seventh shed was finally taking form — its walls stood up right and did not seem to waver too much. Sora was humming contentedly under his breath, nails sticking out of his mouth.

 _Stop ignoring us._

Thunder could be heard from afar, and Sora looked up towards the northern mountain to see lightning striking its peak. Behind him, shed number two quivered.

 _Stop ignoring **me.**_

Sora hammered louder, hoping that the noise would cover the rumbling of the thunder and the whispers escaping the dreaded shed. It had been a mistake, that's all. Of course, as time went by - or _did it? -_ Sora had missed his friends. Not too much — just the occasional joke Goofy had once made, or that one time Donald had screamed in fear at his own reflection, or when Kairi'd taught him how divisions were made, or even that one time he, Yuffie, Cid and Aerith had managed to break Leon's façade and he'd cracked a smile.

One at a time, they'd showed up, appearing out of thin air and smiling at him like they used to. Sora did not fall for the trap. He _knew_ where he was, what he was, from now on. Or rather, what he wasn't.

Alive.

 _Please come back to me._

It would have been okay if they'd just smiled. But they didn't. This place could not conjure human imagination, could not give them life — therefore, Sora did. Sora's doubts and fears and doubts had begun to manifest through their voices, and it was a strange experience to have Mickey bully him over his sawing abilities and Aerith deadpanning a list of his most intimate and embarrassing flaws with her sweet, motherly voice.

Therefore, Sora had locked them in shed number two.

It had not been that difficult, really; it was enough for Sora to wish them _not to be here_ , and all the implications that came with that idea. The thought of them being really, actually here almost brought tears to his eyes. Which it did, very often. Sora had never cried more than in the eternity he'd spent in this place. His mood was as unpredictable as the sudden avalanches that would come down the mountains. He could be beaming at his work one second and sobbing on the floor the next — but that was not important.

Sora was always careful not to dwell too much on his thoughts when the crying happened. It was dangerous, because then he'd acknowledge that —

No.

 _Sora please, please!_

He knew the voices to be a manifestation of what he was the most ashamed of. But he couldn't allow himself to let _that one_ _thought_ take form, to even spell it out in the depths of his mind. Because the place would pick it up, and Sora just had to keep ignoring it. He _had_ to.

 _Look at me._

"Go away," he groaned through clenched teeth as he forced himself to beam at his repetitive work. Hammering the nails. Getting another nail. Endless supplies of nails and wooden planks and Sora _had_ to remain a busy little bee.

 ** _Look_** _at me._

He'd been crying for years, by now. Probably. What even was _time_. His body started shaking against his own will and he tried to focus his distracted mind on the work at hand. _bang bang bang bang_ did the hammer.

"WILL YOU FUCKING _ **LOOK AT ME**?" _

So Sora did, turned back on his heels, eyes blinded by a torrent of tears he'd long given up on holding in, and punched the face of the half-formed thought, sending his Riku - no, _NO! -_ \- to stagger back to the ground and Sora stood there, panting, despair flooding all understanding he'd managed to make of this dreadful, hateful place.

* * *

Riku woke up with a start, searing pain flaming through his jaw. He brought a shaking hand to his face, trying to cup and rub the pain away, all the while slowly coming back to his own, _real_ senses.

He'd dreamed again.

His mouth tasted like ash and iron and he slowly wrapped his arm around his middle, trying to somehow calm his body from the oneiric assault and the deafening pain that had found its way back to his heart. Sora, his Sora, he'd seen him, he'd been crying and been so _stubborn_ it had driven his dream-self _crazy —_

He was crying too, he realised, and brought his fingers to his cheeks to find them drenched in tears. Of course he was. The extent of Sora's nightmare was more than anything his dream-eater powers could possibly handle.

 _But I was there_ , he suddenly realised, and his heart jumped in his chest. Nausea got the better of him and he managed to reach down to the side of his bed in time to let go of whatever he'd managed to eat the night before.

He sat in his own puddle of sweat and fear for a long time, until he managed to gather his wits and get down off of his bed. He cleaned his mess up with shaky hands — his dream and the ensuing sickness had made him weak and he knew he had to get down for breakfast as soon as possible if he did not want to end up fainting in the midst of a battle.

Leon had given them a key to his and Tifa's flat, given that none of them really slept in there during the week. Riku had expected it to be a one bedroom studio in which the couple could plan for a future but the place had turned out to be a two storey, five-bedroomed duplex which allowed each and every member of their little group some form of privacy. Mickey had taken the largest room, facetiously arguing that a mouse of his stature deserved the best there was to offer. Riku had let out an incredulous chuckle at that — throughout their solemn adventures, there had been little time to engage in anything other than pragmatic and straight-forward discussions as the world seemed to come to an end. Now that the ever present sense of urgency had finally given way to a time of relative peace, he'd been discovering an entirely new side of his friend. King Mickey was carefree, silly, and mischievous. Riku liked it very much, and hadn't been able to help but laugh at the startled looks Aqua, Ventus and Terra had thrown at the King.

Riku had taken one of the smallest rooms and Ventus had picked the other; Terra and Aqua had pretended to pick the two remaining ones but no one could be fooled anymore by their awkward subterfuge at keeping their relationship discreet; Aqua's bag had joined Terra's by the bed they very obviously intended on sharing, and Ventus had exaggeratedly rolled his eyes at Riku when Terra had pretended to mistake it for his own.

Ventus was the only one awake when Riku joined the large kitchen. His eyes were set on the cereal box placed before him, munching on his empty spoon distractedly. Riku got himself a mug, pressed the button on the coffee machine and went to rest his weight on the counter, eyebrows raised at Ventus' apparent fascination for whatever advertisement was scribbled on the box.

"What's so fascinating?" he asked once his cup was full of steaming coffee, hand reaching for the sugar and pouring in a ridiculous amount of it.

"It's a game," Ventus said, looking up at him and smiling sheepishly. "A spot the differences game. Can't find the sixth."

Riku hummed, swirling his spoon and sitting next to Ventus to take a look at the two almost identical pictures of a dog attacking his own tail.

"I've got the barrel, the roof thingie, the tail, the ear, and the door. Can't find the last one."

"It's the window."

"No I've— oh _right!_ Thanks Riku!"

"Welcome," Riku replied, his heart constricting a little at Ventus' all too familiar smile.

Although there were no similarities between the two boys, the decade spent living in Sora's heart had irremediably left its marks on the other boy's identity, and some of Ven's mannerisms were unmistakably also _Sora's._

It hurt, sometimes.

"Riku, are you okay? You look— you look sick. Like, _really_ sick."

"Oh, yeah," Riku replied, dismissively waving his hand in the air. "Woke up a bit shaken up. I'm all right, though. Nothing breakfast can't fix."

Ventus' expression betrayed deep concern. "What happened?"

Riku averted his eyes and blinked away the treacherous emotions menacing to take control of him once more. "Another dream."

"Did you- did you see him? Sora? Was he okay?"

"No. Not really."

Riku lowered his mug and kept his eyes fixed on the beverage, as if he could somehow find answers to his questions there. "He—he seemed off. But also, the dream in itself was strange. I was self-aware this time, almost like lucid dreaming. I could talk and move, but it was as if my feet were stuck and my limbs were so heavy it was no use to _try_."

"Did he know you were there?"

Riku shook his head, biting his lip absentmindedly as he tried to untangle his confused memory of the dream. "No- _yes_ , I think. I don't know? He definitely punched me in the face, though. That still hurts."

Ventus blinked at that. "He _punched_ you?"

Riku nodded.

"And you could _feel_ it?"

Riku nodded again.

"Riku, that's not— that's not how—"

He was interrupted by the arrival of the couple, both sporting a weird, yet enticing combination of lovesick radiance and morning grogginess. They were holding hands and softly giggling at each other, and Ventus groaned at that, letting out a very convincing retch-like sound.

"It's sickening," he said to Riku, rolling his eyes once more to emphasise his point. "So, as I was saying—"

"No," Riku interrupted him, unwilling to cast a shadow on the happiness of the two morning lovebirds. "Not now."

Ventus raised his eyebrow at that, surprised, before coming to an understanding of Riku's reluctance to approach the subject. The smile he gave him almost took Riku's breath away — it was too much like Sora's.

"Well hello there," Aqua said, bowl already in hand all the while snatching the cereal box from Ventus' grasp. "King Mickey isn't up yet?"

Riku shook his head. "He likes to sleep in."

Terra let out a depreciative noise. "It's always the ones you wouldn't expect." He'd dived straight towards the fruit bowl and was carefully peeling a banana.

Aqua pouted at her companion. "That's too bad — should we wake him up?"

"Why? Why is that too bad?" Ventus asked.

Aqua blushed, then looked once more at Terra, and a silent discussion took place between the two of them, made out of frowns and pouts and shrugs. Ventus was frowning, his attention switching between them both as he tried to somehow translate whatever was going on between the two.

" _What_ ," he added, voice turned low and suspicious, "is going on?"

Terra shushed him, and Ventus' cheeks turned red in indignation. Riku let out a soft laugh and got up so as to walk up the stairs, realising that whatever bomb the couple intended to drop on them required the presence of a very sleepy and cranky mouse.

He could hear them laughing at Ven's impatience from downstairs and a soft pang of envy melted his smile as he recalled another time, another entire life, where it had only been the three of them, and feelings had not yet gotten involved and two of the group would team up against the one left in solitude and the teasing and joking would last until unholy hours of the night.

And his thoughts went back to the memory of his and Kairi's argument, and his heart constricted.

Those days were long gone.

Riku waited five long minutes for Mickey to deign coming out of his room, his round eyes squished shut as daylight flooded his darkened room. All Riku had to tell him was "Aqua and Terra have something to tell us," for the king to suddenly come back to his usual joyful self. Both came down to see Ventus held in Terra's grasp, hair being skilfully ruffled by the taller one.

"The king is here," Riku said, picking up an apple and sitting on his own by the edge of the dining table, watching as Ventus finally managed to escape Terra's hold and growled curses and damnation at his two older friends.

"Can you _please_ tell me now _what is going on_? _"_ Ventus pleaded one last time, quite dramatically — he even punctuated his plea with a very mature stomp, crossing his arms all the while glaring at the couple who had joined each other behind the counter and were looking at the lot of them with dumb, happy smiles on their lips.

"We'd like to tell you something," Aqua said, trying very much to contain her smile but definitely unable to help it. "And we wanted you guys to be the very firsts to know."

 _Oh,_ Riku thought, his lips already curling in anticipation.

" _What,_ " Ventus said again.

Mickey had already guessed where the conversation was going and he hid his excited gasp behind his paws.

"We're engaged," Terra said, holding out his and Aqua's hands, and oh, how could Riku not have noticed it before? Both of them wore a silver band on their ring finger, and Riku's heart filled with unexpected warmth at the sight of it.

He was surprised at how selflessly _happy_ he was for them.

Riku couldn't help it — he ran over the couple in unison with a very emotional (and happy-sobbing) Mickey and hugged them with all the strength he could gather, not even caring that he might accidentally break a few of their ribs by doing so.

They almost fell over when Ventus joined them at full speed, and for long minutes, all they were was a big entanglement of limbs, giggling, tears, snot and sobs, until finally Aqua gave up and started gasping for air, half screaming and half laughing, and Riku and Mickey managed to get off of them. Ventus remained glued to his best friends, seemingly unable to stop his crying while Terra patted him gently on the back and Aqua murmured appeasing words in his hair.

 _This_ , Riku thought, _is what I want. For all of us._

Mickey looked at him with a gleam of understanding in his eyes and slowly nodded while swiping away at a loose tear, as if confirming that time would come soon enough.

"Look, a raven," Terra said, pointing his finger at the windows behind Riku.

As he turned, dread settling in his stomach, he could feel his pocket buzzing insistently — he didn't need to check the name on the screen of the gummiphone to know who was contacting him. The bird was indeed standing on the verge of the small balcony overlooking the canyon, his yellow eyes peering into Riku's very soul.

"That's not a raven," Riku said, calmly — although he didn't feel calm. At all. "That's Diablo."

"Who?"

"Maleficent's pet."

And Aqua let out a long, frustrated sight. "Well, that's perfect timing. Really. Couldn't have hoped for a better way to conclude our announcement."

Terra laughed, caught her in a tender embrace, and pressed a soft kiss against the top of her hair. "Really? Because that's exactly what I thought it would be like."

And all Riku could do was smile apologetically at them.

* * *

Comments are of course highly appreciated, and I'd be very interested in reading whatever your guesses are as to what is coming next :p  
Thank you so so much for reading, and I'll see you next time!


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